Raiders Need to be the Team They Finished as Last Year

The Las Vegas Raiders need to play consistent football in order to have a shot at the playoffs.

Sep 15, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Las Vegas Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce walks the field before the game against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images / Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

The Las Vegas Raiders found a new identity when Antonio Pierce took over as interim head coach last year.

They had a grit to them, a want.

On Sunday, that all went out the window when Las Vegas got stunned by the Carolina Panthers, 36-22.

It simply wasn't Raiders football. Fans who have followed the team through years of despair may say so, believing nothing has changed. But we know this team is capable of playing with that physical, hard-nosed style.

That's what it has to get back to in order to be competitive this season.

"I mean, it's collective," Pierce said on Monday. "It's just not myself speaking on it. It's not the coaches, it's everybody. We have to do it. We have to buy in. It's one of those games when you watch it, we got beat up on physically. We weren't the more physical team yesterday. We didn't look like the team that wanted it more yesterday. And that's got to be a message that we rally around and we really take pride in.

"And you're going to have times where, sometimes, your best players don't have their best days and other guys got to step up. And that's why it's called team football. I think, more importantly, I think all of us need to just understand, like, you got to roll, you need to do it the best you can do it at full speed. The effort wasn't up to par. ... That showed up; that didn't look good at the end of the game. So, those are the examples."

The Raiders had just come off a momentous upset win over the Baltimore Ravens, one of the best teams in the AFC from last season. They need to return to the effort they gave in that second-half comeback.

Consistency is key in the NFL, and Las Vegas doesn't have it right now. The good news is it's early. With a win this weekend, the Raiders can get back to .500 and start fresh as they look to establish a much-needed identity.

Las Vegas will be back at Allegiant Stadium on Sunday when it hosts another inferior opponent in the Cleveland Browns.

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